Hydraulic fracturing has been commonly used by the oil and gas industry to stimulate production of hydrocarbon producing wells, such as oil and/or gas wells. Hydraulic fracturing, sometimes called “fracing” or “fracking” is a process of injecting fracturing fluid, which is typically a mixture of water, proppants (e.g., sand, fracturing sand, ceramics and resin coated materials), and chemicals, into the wellbore to fracture the subsurface geological formations and release hydrocarbon reserves. The fracturing fluid is pumped into a wellbore at a sufficient pressure to cause fissures within the underground geological formations. Once inside the wellbore, the pressurized fracturing fluid flows into the subsurface geological formation to fracture the underground formation. The fracturing fluid may include water, various chemical additives, and proppants that promote the extraction of the hydrocarbon reserves, such as oil and/or gas. Proppants, such as fracturing sand, prevent fissures and fractures in the underground formation from closing, and for the formation to remain open so that hydrocarbon reserves are able to flow to the surface.
Hydraulic fracturing generally uses large amounts of sand (e.g., about five to fifty million pounds per well) to aid in the fracturing of wells. Prior to transport to the well site, the sand undergoes processing to: (1) remove impurities, (2) to dry the fracturing sand in order for it to meet American Petroleum Institute (API) recommended practices (i.e., RP 19C, 56, 58, and 60) and (3) to make it suitable for metering into the mixing process using conventionally employed hydraulic fracturing process equipment (e.g., fracturing blender) to produce a slurry or fracturing fluid. Mining and/or processing operators initially mine for fracturing sand within sand deposits that contain quartz grains with desired properties, such as relatively high crush strength and roundness. To satisfy fracturing criteria, the operators process the mined sand by washing it to remove impurities and subsequently drying the sand to remove moisture. Mining operators may then further filter out sand particles that fail to satisfy specific size criteria for fracturing operations. Once processing is complete, operators load and deliver the fracturing sand to well sites that may be hundreds of miles from the point of origin using specialized rail cars, trailers (e.g., hopper trailers and pneumatic vessels), and trucks that protect fracturing sand from environmental exposure. Operators use silos, domes, and other large and expensive storage vessels to store the dry sand at various points along the supply chain. Maintaining dry fracturing sand prior to mixing to form fracturing fluid increases an operator's ability to reliably control and meter the flow of fracturing sand. In contrast, wet fracturing sand normally clumps together causing its flow to be less consistent and more difficult to meter for fracturing purposes. Unfortunately, drying, transporting, and storing vast quantities of dry fracturing sand increases financial, operating, and logistical costs associated with fracturing operations.